Newsletter

RUBIO’S NEXT MOVE: Marco Rubio, who has remainded out of the public eye since the GOP's shellacking Tuesday, huddled with some of his top advisers Friday to discuss politics and immigration, POLITICO has learned.

GOP NOMINEES: The strongest GOP presidential nominee in 2016 will come from Florida, according to the latest National Journal Political Insiders Poll. But Republicans and Democrats don't agree if that person is Sen. Marco Rubio or former Gov. Jeb Bush. National Journal

‘WE THE PEOPLE’ The media has begun to pick up on a new trend seen on "We the People," the White House's citizen-led petition drive site. According to Buzzfeed, over a dozen petitions were filed on the site this weekend asking for the federal government to allow various states to secede from the union, with Texas' being the most popular. Miami Herald

Howdy, it's Tuesday and this is Florida Morning, your daily digest of political news around the Sunshine State. Bi-partisan fundraiser, a new rising start in Democratic consulting circles, and talking tuition reform.

SINK, GOODMAN HOST PUBLIC TV FUNDER: Sink, the Democratic Party's 2010 candidate for governor, and Adam Goodman, a leading Republican political consultant, will co-chair a unique bi-partisan event to raise money for WEDU, Tampa Bay's public television station. Tampa Bay Times

Christian Ulvert In the small pool of hot shot Democratic operatives in Florida, Ashley Walker and Steve Schale earned their gold medals well before they led Obama's successful Florida campaigns in 2012 and 2008 respectively. But we'd nominate another big Democratic star in this election cycle who should not be overlooked: Christian Ulvert, who led the Florida House campaigns where the party won nine races and netted five additional seats in the Florida House. Miami Herald

PRICE-INDEXED COLLEGE DEGREES: A task force created by Governor Rick Scott is exploring varying university fees based on major: SaintPetersBlog

SIZING UP THE POLLSTERS: Nate Silver, the wiz-kid behind the New York Times "Five Thirty Eight" blog, not only precisely called the outcome of the presidential race, he statistically nailed the performance of every state. Miami Herald

CRISAFULLI TAPED AS INCOMING SPEAKER: TALLAHASSEE — Florida House Republicans have unanimously rallied around Merritt Island Republican Steve Crisafulli to take over the speakership in 2015 and 2016 in place of Chris Dorworth, whose stunning defeat at the hands of Democratic lawyer Mike Clelland was made official by manual recount Monday. Orlando Sentinel

KUDOS TO SEMINOLE ELECTIONS CHIEF: Given all the attention Florida elections supervisors receive for screwing things up, it's worth noting that the vast majority - ok, at least a majority - run efficient, accurate elections. Let's single out one for particular praise today: Seminole Elections Supervisor Mike Ertel who has been a reassuring model of transparency, regularly sending out updates and early and absentee votes and today livestreaming the recount of Florida House District 29 on his office website and his Facebook page. Tampa Bay Times

MICA WANTS T&I TERM-LIMIT WAIVER: House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman John Mica will meet with Speaker John Boehner this week to discuss a possible term limit waiver, according to a Mica spokesman. SaintPetersblog“BLIND STATE AGENCY SPENDING RAISES SCRUTINY: Looking for a lesson in how government outsourcing is working in Florida? Tampa Bay Times

MURPHY UP AFTER PARTIAL RECOUNT: After a recount of ballots cast during three days of early voting in Florida’s St. Lucie County, Democrat Patrick Murphy still leads Rep. Allen West (R) by a margin of more than 0.5 percent, more than enough to avoid an automatic recount of all votes. Washington Post

THAT WAS QUICK: The 2012 election is not a week old and …State Rep. Ken Roberson, R-Port Charlotte, filed papers this week that are an initial step toward seeking re-election in 2014, while Rep. Jim Waldman, D-Coconut Creek, said he plans to run for the Senate in 2016. SaintPetersBlog

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